Plan your time off with the official rules
Public holidays, work hours and maternity leave dates for the US, UK, Canada and Australia.
Hours in a regular week
37.5 hours
- Hours in 2026
- 1,875
- Hours a month, on average
- 156.25
- Working days in 2026
- 250
- Holidays on your days
- 11
Holidays taken off (11) and month by month
- Jan 1, 2026 (Thursday): New Year’s Day
- Jan 19, 2026 (Monday): Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Feb 16, 2026 (Monday): Washington’s Birthday
- May 25, 2026 (Monday): Memorial Day
- Jun 19, 2026 (Friday): Juneteenth National Independence Day
- Jul 3, 2026 (Friday): Independence Day
- Sep 7, 2026 (Monday): Labor Day
- Oct 12, 2026 (Monday): Columbus Day
- Nov 11, 2026 (Wednesday): Veterans Day
- Nov 26, 2026 (Thursday): Thanksgiving Day
- Dec 25, 2026 (Friday): Christmas Day
| Month | Working days | Holidays | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20 | 2 | 150 |
| February | 19 | 1 | 142.5 |
| March | 22 | 0 | 165 |
| April | 22 | 0 | 165 |
| May | 20 | 1 | 150 |
| June | 21 | 1 | 157.5 |
| July | 22 | 1 | 165 |
| August | 21 | 0 | 157.5 |
| September | 21 | 1 | 157.5 |
| October | 21 | 1 | 157.5 |
| November | 19 | 2 | 142.5 |
| December | 22 | 1 | 165 |
Hours in 2026 count every weekday of the year, minus the holiday list.
Source: OPM: Federal holidays, checked on .
Vacation and sick days you will use.
U.S. Office of Personnel Management. OPM’s list is for Federal employees. When a holiday falls on a Saturday, for most Federal employees the preceding Friday is treated as the holiday (5 U.S.C. 6103(b)); when it falls on a Sunday, the following Monday (Executive Order 11582, section 3(a)). Private employers and states choose their own days. The December 31, 2027 line comes from the 2028 tab of the same OPM page.
Information, not legal advice. Your employer’s policy, your contract and your state or province can differ from the rule shown. Confirm dates with your employer and the official body.
- Free, no sign-up
- Official sources, checked Oct 2026
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Five tools for time away from work
- Work hours calculatorHours per week, month and year, with holidays taken off.
- Maternity leave datesStart, end, return and notice dates for the US, UK, Canada and Australia.
- 2026 and 2027 holidaysUS federal holidays and UK bank holidays, with the weekend rule.
- PTO accrual calculatorHours of paid time off earned each pay period and each year.
- Work anniversaryTime with an employer, the next milestone and a message to send.
How many hours do I work in a year?
Multiply your hours per day by the days you work, then take off the holidays. A 9 to 5 day with a 30 minute break is 7.5 hours, so 37.5 hours a week. The year 2026 has 261 weekdays; the 11 US federal holidays on OPM’s list leave 250 working days, which is 1,875 hours at 7.5 hours a day. The work hours calculator does this for any times, any days of the week and any of the four holiday lists.
Which public holidays fall in 2026 and 2027?
The US federal list from OPM has 11 holidays in 2026 and 12 in 2027, because OPM shows Friday, December 31, 2027 as the day taken for New Year’s Day 2028. GOV.UK lists 8 bank holidays a year for England and Wales, 10 and 9 for Scotland, and 10 a year for Northern Ireland. The year strip above marks the days of the list you choose.
How do I find the date maternity leave can start?
It depends on the country, so pick one in the leave tab. In the United Kingdom the earliest start is usually 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. In Australia unpaid parental leave may start up to 6 weeks before the expected birth. In Canada, Employment Insurance maternity benefits can start as early as 12 weeks before the due date. The US page we read gives no earlier limit, so that stays not confirmed.
Is this legal advice?
No. It is information from official pages. Your employer’s policy, your contract, your state or province and a union agreement can give you more than the minimum shown here, and rules change. Use the dates to prepare a conversation with your employer or the official body, not to replace it.
Worked example: hours in a year at 7.5 hours a day
Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00 with a 30 minute unpaid break, for each holiday list.
| Holiday list | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| US federal holidays | 250 days, 1,875 h | 249 days, 1,867.5 h |
| UK bank holidays (England and Wales) | 253 days, 1,897.5 h | 253 days, 1,897.5 h |
| UK bank holidays (Scotland) | 251 days, 1,882.5 h | 252 days, 1,890 h |
| UK bank holidays (Northern Ireland) | 251 days, 1,882.5 h | 251 days, 1,882.5 h |
Questions about leave, holidays and work hours
Is Leave Advice free, and do I need an account?
It is free and there is no account or sign-up. Nothing is sold to you and no personal detail is asked for.
Does the site keep my due date or start date?
No. Dates, names and numbers you type stay on the page. They are not sent to a server, not saved, and not put in the page address. Close the page and they are gone.
Why are there only four countries for maternity leave?
We only include a country when we could open its official rule on the day we checked it. The United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia met that test. Anything we could not open is marked not confirmed instead of guessed.
Why does a date say it is an estimate?
Some limits count from the real birth date, which nobody knows in advance. Those results use your due date as a stand-in and say so. When the baby arrives, enter the real date and the limit moves with it.
Does it cover paternity, adoption or pay?
No. It covers maternity and parental leave dates and weeks only, and it never shows money. Pay, paternity and adoption rules are on the official pages linked from each result.
What if my employer gives more than the rule says?
Then your employer’s promise is what counts for you. The tool shows the minimum from the official page, so you can see how far your own terms go beyond it.
Sources and limits
- OPM: Federal holidays
The 2026 and 2027 holiday schedules, and the weekend rule: Saturday holidays are treated as the preceding Friday (5 U.S.C. 6103(b)), Sunday holidays as the following Monday (Executive Order 11582, section 3(a)). The list is for Federal employees. The 2028 tab lists Friday, December 31 for New Year’s Day.
U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Opened on .
- GOV.UK: UK bank holidays
Bank holidays of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for 2026 and 2027. If a bank holiday is on a weekend, a substitute weekday becomes a bank holiday, normally the following Monday. “Your employer does not have to give you paid leave on bank or public holidays.”
UK Government. Opened on .
- GOV.UK: Maternity pay and leave, Leave
Statutory Maternity Leave is 52 weeks (26 ordinary, 26 additional); 2 weeks must be taken after the birth (4 in a factory); the earliest start is usually 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth; leave starts the day after an early birth; 8 weeks’ notice to change the return date.
UK Government. Opened on .
- U.S. Department of Labor: Family and Medical Leave Act
“Up to 12 workweeks of leave in a 12-month period” for the birth of a child and to care for the newborn within one year of birth; eligibility: 12 months with a covered employer, 1,250 hours in the 12 months before leave, a location with 50 employees within 75 miles.
U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Opened on . Page says: last updated January 26, 2026.
- Canada.ca: EI maternity and parental benefits
Maternity benefits: up to 15 weeks, not shareable. Parental benefits: standard up to 40 weeks shared (35 for one parent) within 52 weeks, or extended up to 69 weeks shared (61 for one parent) within 78 weeks, counted from the week the child is born.
Government of Canada, Employment Insurance. Opened on . Page shows: 2026-06-02.
- Fair Work Act 2009, Division 5: Parental leave (Fair Work Commission copy)
Sections 67, 70, 71, 72A, 74, 76 and 76A of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Compilation No. 68, compilation date 30 August 2025, authorised version C2025C00518): 12 months of unpaid parental leave; may start up to 6 weeks before the expected birth and must end within 24 months of the birth; 10 weeks’ written notice; request up to 12 more months at least 4 weeks before the end.
Australian Government, Fair Work Commission (text of the Act). Opened on . Compilation No. 68, 30/08/2025.
Not confirmed: Years other than 2026 and 2027, countries other than the four named, and every pay amount are not covered. Each tool lists what its own pages do not say.
Information, not legal advice. Your employer’s policy, your contract, your state or province and a union agreement can give you more than the minimum shown here, and rules change. Confirm dates with your employer and the official body before you plan or give notice. Nothing you type leaves your browser.